Internet star's suicide case heard in court

The case of an internet celebrity who committed suicide by drinking pesticide during a livestream after alleged online harassment was publicly heard in the Pingyi County People's Court in Linyi, Shandong province, on Tuesday.

Sun Fanbao, a resident of Pingyi, known as "Guan Guan" online, gained fame in 2021 for his solo tractor trip to Tibet. On Feb 11 this year, Sun ingested pesticide in a livestream. Despite medical treatment, he died three days later at the age of 38.

On Feb 15, Sun's wife released a video revealing that Sun had endured six months of incessant online harassment, insults, and instigation that eventually drove him to take his own life.

The accused, a man surnamed Hu, aged 50, has been detained in custody since his arrest in March, according to Haibao News, a media outlet based in Shandong province.

Sun's parents, who initiated the criminal case against Hu, and their lawyer alleged that Hu, a follower of "Guan Guan", publicly made derogatory and defamatory comments about Sun's character from August 2022 to February 2023. They accused Hu of fabricating facts and damaging Sun's reputation, leading to his mental breakdown and suicide.

They argued that Hu had reworked and distorted the content of Sun's livestreams, exaggerating facts and altering details to mislead other internet users.

They contended that Hu's continued provocative comments, even when Sun expressed an intention to commit suicide, demonstrated his deliberate and reckless behavior and proved his subjective intent.

They argued that Hu's criminal acts were clear, and the evidence against him was sufficient. They demanded that Hu be punished for the crimes of insult and defamation and also sought compensation totaling 1.81 million yuan ($252,000) in their attached civil lawsuit.

In court, Hu denied the accusations. He stated that his behavior was aimed at exposing Sun's alleged fraudulent activities, such as fake donations and deception for personal gain.

"I always believed he was acting," Hu exclaimed. He claimed to have thought that Sun's suicide by drinking pesticide was scripted, but "spiraled out of control in the end".

Hu's defense lawyer argued that Sun was under tremendous financial pressure and incurred significant debts, which contributed to his mental state before the suicide.

Hu said he did not personally know Sun and claimed that his online comments were merely "fooling with other internet users".

The trial on Tuesday lasted for about three hours. Both parties presented evidence and underwent cross-examination. The presiding judge announced an adjournment, with the verdict to be announced at a later date.